Apple strikes again, with a new patent filing that is for the use of the iPhone/iPod Touch as a gaming controller or universal remote. In addition, even more interesting is that Apple has also applied for a patent for a gaming controller device that would be used to interact with iOS devices and AppleTV.

The gaming controller from the pictures does seem to look a bit like the Sony Dual Shock, or at least that is what it reminds us of. The dual analog sticks and shoulder buttons are common these days for controllers, so it isn’t a surprise that Apple would choose a similar design.

The patent application to use the iPhone as a universal remote, however, is a bit more interesting news. It does lend credibility to the fact that Apple will add an infrared transmitter to the top of the next iPhone and iPod Touch (and likely to the next iPad, as well).

The transmitter would enable the devices to be used as a universal remote without having to connect an infrared transmitter to the docking connector or using one that is externally connected via Bluetooth or Wi-Fi. If approved, this patent could potentially cause problems for others already using or planning to use the iPhone/iPod Touch in this manner.

Quite expectedly, the legal battle between Apple and Samsung is far from over, despite fruit themed toymaker Apple winning the last round. Apple has won an injunction against Samsung's Galaxy Nexus but Samsung filed a motion to stay the injunction over the course of the appeal.

Samsung argues in its case that the Court based its decision on "legally insuficient evidence" that Samsung and Apple are competitors. The company claims the order does not comply with Federal Circuit's directive, whereby the said loss of market share would have to be "substantial". Additionally, Samsung maintains that such a loss would have to be attributable to the infringing feature, rather than mere presence of a product on the market.

Samsung claims that the Court's "causation as to the 604 patent" was at least questionable, insisting that Siri is a different feature than the "unified search covered by the 604 patent". Samsung is apparently narrowing the scope of the patent, similarly to how some Apple's patents were handled earlier.

It is said that the judge will not stay the injunction for the entire duration of the appeal, but that she may do so until the Federal Circuit decides whether to stay it.

Developer Rocksteady has been hard at work in their Batcave, so to speak, trying to resolve the save corruption issues that have been dogging PC players of Batman: Arkham City since release.

Finally, a new patch for the PC should (or might) allow some to be able to restore their corrupted saved files if they happen to still have them. In addition, the PC only update addresses a couple of other issues, including a number of graphics issues for both Crossfire and SLI users.

Rocksteady has also improved the patching process so that it goes along much smoother now and gets rid of the error messages. Rocksteady does seem to think they finally have a handle on the saved corruption issues, so let’s hope that we don’t see it rear its ugly head again.

Nokia has submitted its annual report to the SEC, providing an insight into company's current situation.

It doesn't take a rocket scientist to see that Nokia is still in bad shape - what was once a giant now looks more like Bear Grylls trying to escape.....well, Symbiania would probably be the right country. You may recall that Nokia posted e €1.4 billion loss and its net sales amounted to €38.6 billion. In comparison, the previous year saw Nokia post €1.3 billion profit and €42.4 billion in net sales.

The company shipped 339.8 million phones in 2011, which is 3 percent lower than in 2010 and has been attributed to the competition's aggressive pricing and lack of a dual-SIM handset in 1H 2011. Nokia's smartphones fared even worse at 77.3 million sold, which is as much as 25 percent less than in 2010. Again, this is down to aggressive competition as well as the gradual demise of Symbian.

The report is quite clear that Nokia's future smartphone success will have much to do with Windows Phone. Nokia's current plan is to support Symbian through 2016, but Windows Phone will be the OS of choice for mid-range and high-end handsets.

WikiLeaks has begun publishing more than five million emails from the Texas-headquartered "global intelligence" company Stratfor. The emails date from between July 2004 and late December 2011.

Stratfor provides confidential intelligence services to large corporations, such as Bhopal's Dow Chemical, Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, Raytheon and government agencies, including the US Department of Homeland Security, the US Marines and the US Defense Intelligence Agency. The emails show Stratfor's web of informers, pay-off structure, payment-laundering techniques and psychological methods of controlling people either financially, sexually or psychologically.

CEO George Friedman instructs Stratfor analyst Reva Bhalla on 6 December 2011, on how to exploit an Israeli intelligence informant providing information on the medical condition of the President of Venezuala, Hugo Chavez. The material contains privileged information about the US government's attacks against Julian Assange and WikiLeaks and Stratfor's own attempts to subvert WikiLeaks.

There are more than 4,000 emails mentioning WikiLeaks or Julian Assange. The emails also expose the revolving door that operates in private intelligence companies in the United States. Government and diplomatic sources from around the world give Stratfor advance knowledge of global politics and events in exchange for money.

The Global Intelligence Files exposes how Stratfor has recruited a global network of informants who are paid via Swiss banks accounts and pre-paid credit cards. Stratfor has a mix of covert and overt informants, which includes government employees, embassy staff and journalists around the world.